Portable vault.



' S. W. DYCKMAN.

PORTABLE VAULT. APPLICATION nuzo JAN-22 1916.

Patented Apr. 24, 1917.

WITNESS INVENTOR 7 Ala/QM '4 ATTORNEY view of one form STEPHEN w.IDYOIKMAN, or nnw YORK, N. Y.

' PORTABLE VAULT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 24, 1917.

Application filed January 22, 1916. Serial at. 73,585.

To all whom it may) concern: I

Be it known that I, STEPHEN NV. DYCK- MAN, a citizen of the UnitedStates, and a resident of New York, borough ,of' Bronx,

county of Bronx, and State of New York, have invented a certain new anduseful Improvement in Portable Vaults, of which the following is a full,clear and exact specification.

This invention relates to a class of articles of manufacture adapted tobe used for burial purposes.

My invention. has for itsobject primarily to providea vault ofpractically a waterproof and airproof construction designed to beemployed for placing a coffin therein,

and which may be made so as to be portable if desired. The inventionconsists essentially of an open top box-like bodymade of metallic shellor reinforcing member with a covering of waterproof and airproof plasticmaterial, and the upper edges of the walls of the body are formedto-provide a number of rightangularly shaped superposed annular ledgesdisposed on horizontal planes as well asv beingdisposed onan upwardincline. Removably positioned on the open top of the body is a'lid madeof a metallic reinforcing member with a covering of waterproof andairproof plastic .material, and depending from the underside of the lidis an annular marginal Ifiange disposed on one of the annular ledgesofthe body.

Other objects of the invention are to pro vide locking elements wherebythe lid and the body may be releasably fastened together; and to providea sealing device so that air and moisture will be prevented from beingadmitted into the vault between the body and lid when locked,

A practical embodiment of the invention is represented in theaccompanying drawing forming a part of this specification in whichsimilar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all theviews, the said invention being more fully described hereinafter, andthen pointed out in the claim at the end of the description.

In the drawing, Figure '1 is a perspective of portable 'vault embodyingmy invention.

' thereof will rest on Fig. 2 is a section taken on the line II-II ofFig. 1, and

Fig. 3 is a section taken on the line III-III ofFig. 1. I The vault hasan open top box-like body 10 which may be of any'preferred size andshape, though the body is preferably substantially rectangular toprovide abo-ttom 11, two side walls 12, 13 and two end walls 14, 15. Thebody 10 is composed of a metallic shell, or reinforcing member, as 16,of wire cloth, or other intersticed, or corrugated metal correspondingto the shape of the body, and this shell is embedded in the walls andbottom of the body proper by covering the shell with plastic material toprovide an inner layer, as 17, and an outer layer, as 18. As shown, theouter layer 18 is preferably greater in thickness than the inner layer,and these layers are practically waterproof and airproof by being madeof cement, particles of gravel, or other sub stance mixed with water, orother liquid to form a paste-like mass which is spread by any suitablemeans on both surfaces of the shell and in conjunction therewith maybeemployed a material commercially known as masterbuilders waterproofcompound, though instead of the ingredients any other plastic materialmay be used. The upper edges of the side walls 12, 13, 14, 15 of thebody 10 are formed to provide a number of rightangularlyshapedsuperposed annular ledges 19, 20, 21 disposed on horizontal planes aswell as being. disposed on an upward incline.

On the open top of the body 10 of the vault is a lid 22 of a sizepreferably corresponding to the extreme perimeter of the body, anddepending from the underside of the lid isan annular, 'or substantiallyrectangular marginal flange 23. When this lid is positionedon thetop ofthe body 10 parts the top ledge 21 of the body, and the depending flange23 is of a width so that its free edge will contact with theledge19'while the flange is also of a width similar to the width of thisledge.

In order to releasably fasten the lid 22 to the body 10 I provide anumber of looking elements, as 24, all of which may be similarly formed.Each of the locking elements at has an interiorly threaded socket member25 embedded at spaced intervals in the ledge 21 of the body so that theopen ends of all of the socket members are in opposed relation to thelid, and through the lid are spaced openings 26-each in register withthe opening of each of the socket members. In each of the openings 26 ofthe lid is a freely rotatable screw bolt 27, and these bolts are oflengths so that their threaded ends are screwed in the socket members,while on the upper end of each bolt above thelid is a head 28 to allowthe bolts to be manually rotated.

By accordingly screwing the bolts 27 in the socket members 25 the lidmay be tightened or loosened as desired on the body of the vault, andserving to prevent the admission of air and moisture into the vaultbetween the lid and the body, a sealing device 29 is provided. Thesealing device 29 is composed of an annular, or substantiallyrectangular band member 30 of a shape corresponding to the shape of thebody 10 as well as being of a size to encompass the outer perimeter ofthe body under the ledge 21 for being disposed on top of the ledge 20,as shown. The annular band 30 may be of a suitable thickness, and thisband is made of lead, or other soft pliable metal, or material which issusceptible of being easily punctured, or out without breaking orsplitting, and on the underside of the lid 22 adjacent to its marginalflange 23 is an annular, or substantially rectangular blade 31. Theblade 31 is preferably formed with a tapered free edge, as viewedtransversely. This blade is arranged so that when the lid is on the bodyof the vault its cutting edge will be in contact with the central partcircumferentially of the band 30, and this blade is of a width so thatwhen resting on the puncturable band member 30 the underside of the lidproper and the free edge of its flange 23 will be slightly spaced abovethe ledges 19 and 21 of the body of the vault. WVhen the lid is thenforced into close contact with the ledges 19 and 21 of the body bytightening the bolts 27 the cutting edge of the blade 31 will be causedto be sunken in the band member 30 to a depth for providing amoistureproof and air-tight joint between the members of the sealingdevice, and in this manner all moisture and air will be prevented fromentering the interior of the vault between the lid and its body.Moreover, a vault made in accordance with this invention may besufficiently light in weight for being portable if desired.

In the foregoing description, I have embodied the preferred form of myinvention, but I do not wish to be understood as l'imit ing myselfthereto as I am aware that modifications may be made therein withoutdeparting from the principle, or sacrificing any of the advantages ofthis invention, therefore I reserve to myself the right to make suchchanges as fairly fall within the scope thereof.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secureby Letters Patent A portable vault, consisting of an open top box-likebody formed of an intersticed metallic reinforcing shell having acovering of waterproof and airproof plastic material, and the upperedges of the walls of the body being formed to provide a number ofrightangularly shaped superposed annular ledges disposed on horizontalplanes as well as being disposed on an upward incline, a cover on theopen top of, the body also formed of an intersticed metallic reinforcingmember with a covering of waterproof and airproof plastic material, anannular flange depending from the lid, and disposed so that its freeedge rests on the lower ledge of the body, threaded bolts freelyrotatable in spaced openings in the lid, and adapted to be screwed inthreaded sockets provided in the walls of the body for releasablyfastening the lid thereto, a puncturable metallic band on one of theledges adjoining the flange of the lid, and an annular blade on theunderside of the lid, adapted to be sunken in the band when the lid islocked to the body whereby moisture and air will be prevented fromentering between the lid and the body when locked together.

This specification signed and witnessed this 20th day of January A. D.1916.

STEPHEN W. DYGKMAN.

WVitnesses:

J. F. PHELAN, EDWARD CLnMoNs.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

